Blues & Boogie Rock

Blues and Boogie Rock evolved from the first wave of British Invasion bands, including the Rolling Stones, the Animals, Them, and the Yardbirds. These bands, and to a lesser extent their American counterparts, imitated their heroes: Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Howlin' Wolf, and other blues artists. Many focused on the blues' 12-bar form, especially its well-worn, familiar shuffle, and copped a license from guitar stingers B.B. King and Albert King to make the guitar solo one of the more prominent parts of a song. Sixties guitar legend Jimi Hendrix ventured into the Psychedelic stratosphere with furious lead guitar tangents that threatened not to return to the verse's typical tales of bad luck, booze, and wicked women. His free-spirited, explosive playing has inspired spiritual progeny in players such as the "Texas Flood" of Stevie Ray Vaughan. Other artists such as George Thorogood and Humble Pie focused on the music's unshakable groove, inspiring paunchy guys in black T-shirts to hoist their topless girlfriends on their shoulders in stadiums around the world, enrapt with the unflappable good times.